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A Cook County Forest Preserve mistake will cost taxpayers $137,000, some questioning Wednesday by Commissioner Tim Schneider revealed.
Schneider, of Hanover Park, piped up when what appeared to be a routine lawsuit settlement came before forest preserve commissioners on Wednesday’s agenda.
The item noted that the forest preserve was settling a suit brought by a subcontractor when a general contractor failed to pay it on a forest preserve job. Schneider asked why the contractor wasn’t being made to pay the subcontractor.
After some hemming and hawing, forest preserve officials fessed up, answering yes when Schneider asked if the settlement was being paid “because somebody didn’t do their homework?”
“Unfortunately, that’s correct,” said Rhonda Salee, a forest preserve attorney.
Normally, before being hired for a job, contractors are required to show proof that they have a performance bond so that in the event they don’t finish the job, or there is a dispute over the work, the bonding company assumes the risk of lawsuits. In this case, questioning revealed, the company was bonded, but because the bonding company was from a foreign country, the agreement could not be enforced.
Forest preserve officials conceded they should have checked out the bonding company beforehand but said the fight isn’t over yet. They intend to sue the contractor to recover the money, they said.
They also intend to put a process in place by which bonding companies are thoroughly checked out before awarding contracts, they said.